Male fertility in Arabidopsis requires active DNA demethylation of genes that control pollen tube function

Khouider, Souraya, Borges, Filipe, LeBlanc, Chantal, Ungru, Alexander, Schnittger, Arp, Martienssen, Robert, Colot, Vincent, Bouyer, Daniel (January 2021) Male fertility in Arabidopsis requires active DNA demethylation of genes that control pollen tube function. Nature Communications, 12 (1). p. 410. ISSN 2041-1723

PDF Male fertility in Arabidopsis requires active DNA demethylation of genes that control pollen tube function.pdf Download (1MB)

Abstract

Active DNA demethylation is required for sexual reproduction in plants but the molecular determinants underlying this epigenetic control are not known. Here, we show in Arabidopsis thaliana that the DNA glycosylases DEMETER (DME) and REPRESSOR OF SILENCING 1 (ROS1) act semi-redundantly in the vegetative cell of pollen to demethylate DNA and ensure proper pollen tube progression. Moreover, we identify six pollen-specific genes with increased DNA methylation as well as reduced expression in dme and dme;ros1. We further show that for four of these genes, reinstalling their expression individually in mutant pollen is sufficient to improve male fertility. Our findings demonstrate an essential role of active DNA demethylation in regulating genes involved in pollen function.

Item Type:	Paper
Subjects:	organism description > plant > Arabidopsis bioinformatics bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification > DNA methylation bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification > genes, structure and function > gene expression bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification > genes, structure and function bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification > mutations organism description > plant
CSHL Authors:	Borges, Filipe LeBlanc, Chantal Martienssen, Robert A.
Communities:	CSHL labs > Martienssen lab CSHL Cancer Center Program CSHL Cancer Center Program > Gene Regulation and Inheritance Program CSHL Cancer Center Shared Resources
SWORD Depositor:	CSHL Elements
Depositing User:	CSHL Elements
Date:	18 January 2021
Date Deposited:	29 Apr 2021 20:40
Last Modified:	13 Feb 2024 18:35
PMCID:	PMC7813888
Related URLs:	Publisher
URI:	https://repository.cshl.edu/id/eprint/39957

Actions (login required)

Administrator's edit/view item